Abstract
Plagiarism is a serious problem in the information age. The ideas of others are stolen in their entirety or reassembled with a new author. Institutions and professional organizations have adopted ethical standards, but this has done little to dissuade such practices.
Plagiarism
In the “information age,” plagiarism is in our midst. Among journalists it is considered a “cardinal sin”. Motives for this crime range from the calculating thief of words and ideas to the ill prepared student or scientist, who cuts and pastes to round out their own ideas. Volumes of entire works, essays and numerous publications are within the reach of our mouse. Students and professionals should be cautious in their research. The careless absence of quotes can inadvertently present the work of others as their own. The relative ease in which one may plagiarize has prompted professional organizations and institutions of higher learning to adopt ethics codes to combat the problem.
Plagiarism is an ancient problem. An account during Roman times charges the poet Fidentinus with plagiarizing one of Martial’s poems. Reportedly Martial was not concerned. He considered Findentinus’ poetry to be of such poor quality that eventually Fidentinus’ own work would be his own undoing. Unfortunately there is no moral of Findentinus and his demise, like the myth of Narcissus to speak to the plagiarist today.
The term plagiarize comes from the Latin word plagium which literally means “kidnaping” , to Asteal away or abduct”. Hence the term originates with the idea of a theft. According to Penslar several unethical practices comprise plagiarism :
“The principal ones are appropriating the work of another and claiming it as one’s own; quoting material from a source without using quotation marks or citing the author(s); and using the words or ideas of another without providing a citation or proper attribution.”
These distinctions place plagiarists in three broad groups: (1) intentional theft,
(2) academic neglect, and (3) ignorance.
Theft
Intentional theft is the image most readily available when plagiarism comes to mind. Although some consider plagiarism a crime, plagiarism is an ethical term and not necessarily a legal one. The consequences for intentional plagiarism might result in academic sanctions or dismissal from University and staff writing positions. Plagiarism seldom has criminal or legal consequences.
In the field of journalism punishment does not always fit the crime. Plagiarists are often punished by public shaming, forced retraction, suspension or moving to another job within the same organization. Some editors will even hire or refuse to fire a talented writer because they believe that the writer is of more worth then the cost of an ethical infraction.
Protecting ones work is not a recent endeavor. In Great Britain, as early as 1709 the first copyright act was passed due to complaints of Aliterary piracy” . For those who can afford them, today’s legal battles are costly. Little is gained even when copy right infringement can be proven:
“Vanity Fair writer Ann Louise Bardach did sue Edwin Chen and his publisher, and ended up with a ,000 settlement, out of which she had to cover some ,000 in attorney’s fees.” .
Layne suggests that in order to help clear up the definition of plagiarism and highlight the criminal intent, plagiarism should be identified as fraud . Lafollette appears to agree with Layen in. In discussing plagiarism in published scientific materials, Lafollette points out five legal.
“(1) a false representation, usually of a factual nature, (2) by someone who knew or should have known that it was false, (3) with the intent that someone will rely on it, and (4) someone did rely on it, and (5) as a result suffered a loss (i.e., incurred damages).
With increased availability of electronic media via the internet, plagiarism is steadily becoming a large problem. Internet sites can contain copies of entire text of dissertations, reports and research. Some online businesses sell electronic copies of successful college entrance essays and papers. The availability and marketing of such material implies credibility of the practice.
Writing guilds, universities and professional organizations have taken measures to included plagiarism in their ethical codes. Even so, many magazines and publications have vague policies regarding plagiarism and in some cases have none at all. As Mallon points out, attempts to provide clear guidelines can be difficult as well as ironic:
“The following UPI dispatch inevitably appeared, on June 6, 1980, in the New York Times: Stanford University said today it had learned that it’s teaching assistants handbook section on plagiarism had been plagiarized by the University of Oregon. Stanford issued a release saying Oregon officials conceded that the plagiarism section and other parts of it’s handbook were identical with the Stanford guidebook. Oregon officials apologized and said that they would revise their guide book”
Academic neglect (unintentional plagiarism)
Intentional plagiarism has an obvious intent to present the work of another as ones own. In the case of academic neglect, the intent is less clear and is more often unintentional. In recent times, people like Martin Luther King Jr, Stephen B. Oats and Alex Haley have been accused of plagiarizing others ideas. Definitions of plagiarism can reach from the written word to the idea or ideas it contains. In defense of Dr. King, his reported plagiarism has been credited to an literary technique to were the author uses portions of a credible source to support their own ideas. New Testament writers have been accused of this as well.
How far does this go? Should one always cite the originator of an idea even though the concept may be widely used or accepted? Must one then continue to cite the originator of the idea? Charles Darwin is most often associated with the theory of evolution. Is he always cited in evolutionary science? Are the ideas that Darwin developed his intellectual property or the property of those who influenced Darwin?
Copernicus is often credited with postulating the heliocentric view of the planets and drastic shifts in thought or perspective are referred to as Copernican shifts, crediting Copernicus. The problem is that Aristarchus of Samos first proposed a heliocentric view some 2000 years before Copernicus. Is Copernicus wrongly being credited for the ideas of Aristarchus? Some ideas take on a life of their own and as in the case of Copernicus and even Freud, history tends to associate such ideas with the most eloquent or popular advocate for that idea.
Academic neglect occurs when students or professionals neglect to properly acknowledge the sources of the ideas they use. This may be due to laziness, poorly developed skills, and even ignorance. In the field of education, it is up to institutions of higher learning to clearly define plagiarism and provide guidelines on how to properly cite sources. The potential for plagiarism increases when the institution assumes that this has already been done some place else prior to the students admission.
The American Psychological Association (APA) and The Modern Language Association of America (MLA) both take academic neglect seriously. The American Psychological Association Prohibits both Intentional Plagiarism and academic neglect :
“Psychologists do not present substantial portions or elements of another’s work or data as their own, even if the other work or data source is cited occasionally.”
This is further clarified in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (4th ed.):
“Quotation marks should be used to indicate the exact words of another. Summarizing a passage or rearranging the order of a sentence and changing some of the words is paraphrasing. Each time a source is paraphrased, a credit for the source needs to be included in the text…….The key element of this principle is that the author does not present the work of another as if it were his or her own work. This can extend to ideas as well as written words.” .
According to Onge, the MLA has adopted the view of Alexander Lindey , who defines Plagiarism as taking Athe body of a work, the heart, and core of a work” . In more recent times, the MLA has extended this to “Everything derived from an outside source,” except proverbs, well-known quotations, and common knowledge. Their basic rule is “when in doubt cite.” The MLA also considers plagiarism to be collaborative works apart from group projects. Students who work together and turn in the same work plagiarize the Groups ideas. The MLA also prohibits the recycling of papers. When students turn in papers from a previous course they call it self-plagiarism, since the paper is not an original work. They are not entirely inflexible. Students who wish to rework a paper are instructed to discuss their intent with the instructor .
To this point plagiarism has been defined in terms of intentional theft or fraud, academic neglect or unintentional plagiarism, and failure to cite sources. The remaining definition is ignorance or incompetence. Plagiarism of both prior charges occurs here in varying degrees. The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) includes in its advisory letter on plagiarism several grounds including positive and negative criteria for charges of plagiarism. Included in the negative criteria is incompetency:
“A copier, however diligent, cannot be held responsible if psychological or mentally incompetent. Emotional disorders are not unheard of in the academy. Those ignorant of the rules by accidents of language, culture or educational deficiencies are candidates for re-education, not punishment. A semi-literate star athlete who copies under academic stress indicts the school not himself.
The letter further describes a Athreshold criteria” where the coping of Aapt phrases” should not lead to a charge emphasizing the Aexpositional entity” of a work . The letter even calls for mitigation but not Aforgiveness” of such individuals whose work contributed substance to the work which was copied .
Often individuals who fall in this category are people from impoverished back grounds and those who lack competency in either the English language or the subject matter. Such individuals, according to AAUP, are candidates for re-education while the blatant plagiarist should be investigated and disciplined.
Conclusion
Plagiarism is an ethical crime whose definition is as vague as that of pornography, but when seen is readily identified. The difficulty lies in a useful definition of plagiarism. Some define plagiarism as Aall uses of another words or idea.” While others see degrees of utility in our highly word filled world. Most are congruent in their definition of outright plagiarism, which is stealing the work of another and insisting on the credit as if it were their own. Opinions vary on how much use of a work qualifies as plagiarism, yet most agree one must cite their sources. It is here that the student, journalist or scientist fails. It may be out of lack of preparation, competency, ignorance, or disregard for the academic process.
The debate whether intellectual property includes the ideas contained within the work or not quietly rages. Bono, the lead singer of the pop group U2 states in the song The Fly, that Aevery artist is a cannibal; every poet is a thief,” asserting that ideas are not new, but simply borrowed . King Solomon, in his ecclesiastical treatise on life, the universe and everything, asserts that Athere is nothing new under the sun” . Some ideas may not be new, but the work that goes into developing, organizing and communicating them is. Einstein was not the only Physicist to consider a dynamic system of physics, but he was the first to develop a coherent one and should rightful be honored for his work and credited with a citation.
In the information age, the intellectual properties or works of people are protected by copy right laws. To advance science, education and society, knowledge is built on the work of others. Out of respect and ethical consciousness, students and professionals alike should be diligent in their efforts give the appropriate recognition to others for their work.
The educatory process is a legacy build on the discoveries and questions humankind has passed through the ages. Institutions share in this legacy through the written and electronic word. Honesty and truthfulness are essential in scholarship. Each must demonstrate integrity and take their own place in this legacy by crediting the work of others. Educators should indoctrinate students this process. Curriculum should incorporate steps clearly defining plagiarism. Such curriculum should assist students in identifying instances of potential plagiarism and assist students in developing the appropriate citation skills.
Finally, society should hold accountable those who, with malice, suppose the name of an author and mock our intellectual legacy by hijacking another’s labor for their own personal gain.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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